July 2026 was another month marked by uncertainty, with market performance shaped by evolving global cues and shifting investor sentiment. Despite the uncertain environment, equity PMS strategies continued to present opportunities, with several managers delivering returns ahead of the broader market benchmarks.

The Nifty 50 TRI gained 2.36 per cent, while the S&P BSE 500 TRI advanced 2.19 per cent during the month. Amid these market dynamics, PMS performance remained diverse, with several strategies continuing to demonstrate resilience and deliver returns ahead of the broader benchmarks.

Of the 547 PMS strategies tracked by PMS Bazaar, 473 were equity PMS strategies. Across the equity universe, 155 strategies outperformed the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 139 strategies beat the Nifty 50 TRI, highlighting the continued ability of active PMS managers to identify opportunities even amid uncertain market conditions.

Overall, July's performance reflected the resilience of active management, with a sizeable number of equity PMS strategies outperforming key benchmarks and demonstrating the potential to generate alpha through changing market conditions.

Top 10 PMS Performers

The top-performing PMS strategies continued to stand out in July 2026, with select managers delivering strong returns amid a relatively moderate market environment. The top 10 equity PMS strategies generated an average return of 7.07 per cent, highlighting the continued dispersion in performance and the ability of select managers to capture opportunities across market segments.

Leading the pack was Amaltas Asset Management LLP's Strategic Opportunities Series 1, which delivered a return of 10.54 per cent during the month. Pluswealth Capital Management LLP's PlusWealth Catalyst followed with 9.07 per cent, while White Oak Capital Management Consultants LLP's Digital Leaders secured the third spot with a 7.88 per cent return.

Beyond the top three, Emkay Investment Managers Ltd's Capital Builder delivered 7.24 per cent, followed by Wallfort Fund Management LLP's Avenue Fund at 6.98 per cent. InCred Asset Management's Multicap Portfolio returned 6.10 per cent, while Renaissance Investment Managers Pvt Ltd's Midcap Portfolio gained 5.96 per cent.

Rounding out the top 10 were Avestha Fund Management LLP's Long Term Growth at 5.68 per cent, Fort Capital Investment Advisory Pvt Ltd's Dynamic at 5.67 per cent, and DRChoksey FinServ Pvt Ltd's Alpha Invest, which delivered 5.61 per cent during the month.

Overall, July's leaderboard highlighted the ability of select PMS managers to generate strong returns, with the top strategies delivering meaningful alpha and demonstrating the continued scope for stock- and strategy-specific opportunities.

Category snapshot

Category performance in July 2026 was relatively measured, with large-cap strategies leading the gains. Largecap strategies topped the chart with a return of 2.16 per cent, followed by Multicap & Flexicap at 1.19 per cent and Multi-Asset strategies at 1.18 per cent.

Midcap strategies delivered 1.12 per cent, while Small & Midcap strategies returned 1.09 per cent, reflecting relatively balanced performance across diversified equity segments.

Large & Midcap strategies gained 0.69 per cent, while Thematic strategies returned 0.65 per cent. Small Cap strategies recorded the lowest return among the categories at 0.35 per cent.

Overall, July's category performance highlighted a more balanced market, with large-cap and diversified strategies outperforming small-cap and thematic segments during the month.

Large Cap PMS Performance 

Large Cap PMS strategies delivered a steady performance in July 2026, with the category generating an average return of 2.16 per cent across 31 tracked schemes. The category remained close to the broader benchmarks, with the S&P BSE 500 TRI gaining 2.19 per cent and the Nifty 50 TRI advancing 2.36 per cent.

The breadth of performance remained encouraging, with 20 of the 31 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 15 schemes beat the Nifty 50 TRI, highlighting the ability of several large-cap managers to generate alpha through active portfolio management.

Renaissance Investment Managers Pvt Ltd's Opportunities Portfolio led the category with a return of 4.86 per cent, followed by Right Horizons' Alphabots India Largecap 50 at 4.41 per cent and Right Horizons' Alphabots India 100 at 4.29 per cent.

Overall, July's Large Cap PMS performance highlighted healthy participation across the category, with several strategies delivering strong returns and outperforming the broader market benchmarks.

Multi & Flexicap PMS Performance

Multi & Flexicap PMS strategies delivered an average return of 1.19 per cent in July 2026 across 281 tracked schemes. The category trailed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of performance, however, remained notable. 89 of the 281 schemes outperformed the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 82 schemes beat the Nifty 50 TRI, indicating that a meaningful set of strategies continued to generate alpha despite the category average remaining below the benchmarks.

Amaltas Asset Management LLP's Strategic Opportunities Series 1 led the category with a return of 10.54 per cent, followed by Emkay Investment Managers Ltd's Capital Builder at 7.24 per cent and InCred Asset Management's Multicap Portfolio at 6.10 per cent.

Overall, July's Multi & Flexicap PMS performance highlighted strong dispersion across strategies, with several managers delivering significantly higher returns through active stock selection and portfolio positioning.

Multi-Asset PMS Performance

Multi-Asset PMS strategies delivered an average return of 1.18 per cent in July 2026 across 42 tracked schemes. The category trailed both NSE Multi Asset Index 1, which gained 1.67 per cent, and NSE Multi Asset Index 2, which advanced 1.50 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained limited, with 8 of the 42 schemes outperforming NSE Multi Asset Index 1, while 9 schemes beat NSE Multi Asset Index 2. This indicates that while the category delivered positive returns, only a smaller set of strategies managed to outperform their respective benchmarks.

Pluswealth Capital Management LLP's PlusWealth Catalyst led the category with a return of 9.07 per cent, followed by Shree Rama Managers LLP's Smart Cash Flow Plan at 4.26 per cent and Asit C Mehta Investment Intermediates Ltd's ACE Multi Asset at 4.24 per cent.

Overall, Multi-Asset PMS performance highlighted positive returns across the category, with select strategies delivering strong outperformance through active allocation across asset classes.

Mid Cap PMS Performance

Mid Cap PMS strategies delivered an average return of 1.12 per cent in July 2026 across 23 tracked schemes. The category trailed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained moderate, with 8 of the 23 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 8 schemes also beat the Nifty 50 TRI, highlighting that select mid-cap strategies continued to deliver stronger returns despite the category average remaining below the benchmarks.

Renaissance Investment Managers Pvt Ltd's Midcap Portfolio led the category with a return of 5.96 per cent, followed by Unifi Capital Pvt Ltd's BCAD at 3.92 per cent and Unifi Capital Pvt Ltd's BCAD2 Breakout 20 at 3.46 per cent.

Overall, July's Mid Cap PMS performance highlighted a clear gap between the category average and the broader benchmarks, while leading strategies continued to demonstrate the potential to generate alpha through focused stock selection and active portfolio management.

Mid & Small Cap PMS Performance

Mid & Small Cap PMS strategies delivered an average return of 1.09 per cent in July 2026 across 62 tracked schemes. The category trailed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained selective, with 16 of the 62 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 16 schemes also beat the Nifty 50 TRI. This indicates that while the category average remained below the broader benchmarks, several individual strategies delivered stronger performance.

Wallfort Fund Management LLP's Avenue Fund led the category with a return of 6.98 per cent, followed by Asit C Mehta Investment Intermediates Ltd's Ace Ten Trillion Opportunities at 5.49 per cent and Narnolia Financial Services Ltd's Mid and Small Cap at 5.16 per cent.

Overall, July's Mid & Small Cap PMS performance highlighted a wide variation in returns across strategies, with the leading schemes significantly outperforming the category average and broader market benchmarks.

Large & Midcap PMS Performance

Large & Midcap PMS strategies delivered an average return of 0.69 per cent in July 2026 across 23 tracked schemes. The category trailed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained limited, with 7 of the 23 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 5 schemes beat the Nifty 50 TRI.

Concept Investwell Pvt Ltd's Dynamic led the category with a return of 5.38 per cent, followed by Sykes and Ray Equities India Ltd's SRE Shield at 3.43 per cent and Care Portfolio Managers Pvt Ltd's Large and Midcap Strategy at 3.10 per cent.

Overall, Large & Midcap PMS performance showed a relatively wide gap between the category average and the top-performing strategies, with the leading portfolios delivering considerably stronger returns than the broader category.

Thematic PMS Performance

Thematic PMS strategies delivered an average return of 0.65 per cent in July 2026 across 19 tracked schemes. The category trailed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained selective, with 7 of the 19 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 7 schemes also beat the Nifty 50 TRI.

White Oak Capital Management Consultants LLP's Digital Leaders led the category with a return of 7.88 per cent, followed by Green Portfolio Pvt Ltd's Dividend Yield Fund at 4.23 per cent and InCred Asset Management's Healthcare Portfolio at 4.22 per cent.

Overall,  Thematic PMS performance reflected a wide dispersion in returns, with the leading strategies delivering significantly higher gains than the category average despite the broader thematic segment lagging the market benchmarks.

Small Cap PMS Performance

Small Cap PMS strategies delivered an average return of 0.35 per cent in July 2026 across 27 tracked schemes. The category underperformed both the S&P BSE 500 TRI, which gained 2.19 per cent, and the Nifty 50 TRI, which advanced 2.36 per cent during the month.

The breadth of outperformance remained limited, with 6 of the 27 schemes outperforming the S&P BSE 500 TRI, while 6 schemes also beat the Nifty 50 TRI.

Accuracap's Dynamo led the category with a return of 1.29 per cent, followed by Aequitas Investment Consultancy Pvt Ltd's India Opportunities Product at 0.47 per cent. Alchemy Capital Management's Alpha Small Cap recorded a return of -0.84 per cent.

Overall, July's Small Cap PMS performance remained relatively weak, with the category average trailing both major benchmarks and only a limited number of strategies managing to outperform them.

July 2026 presented another uncertain market environment, but PMS strategies continued to show resilience and pockets of strong performance. Large Cap strategies emerged as the strongest-performing category, while several individual managers delivered notable returns across the PMS universe. The month's performance highlighted the ability of active managers to identify opportunities and generate alpha even as market conditions remained challenging.